1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a porous gutter insert apparatus, and to a method of lining a gutter therewith. More particularly, the present invention relates to a gutter insert apparatus including a non-woven porous fiber matting, and to a method of using the insert apparatus to line a rain gutter, in order to resist accumulation of leaves, sticks and other debris therein.
2. Description of the Background Art
A number of different devices are known for protectively covering rain gutters, to keep leaves and debris from accumulating inside of the gutters. Examples of some of the known devices are described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,855,132 to Dugan, U.S. Pat. No. 4,949,514 to Weller, U.S. Pat. No. 5,103,601 to Hunt, U.S. Pat. No. 5,242,591 to Beechert, U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,783 to Jones, U.S. Pat. No. 5,848,857 to Killworth et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 6,134,843 to Tregear.
A number of commercial products are also available for screening or protecting rain gutters, including Cinch™ Gutter Guards from GutterTop Solutions of Dayton, Ohio, Gutter Topper™ from GutterTopper LTD, of Amelia, Ohio, Gutter Helmet™ from American Metal Products of Dayton, Ohio, the Hallett™ Gutter Cover from Hallett Enterprises of Crawfordsville, Ind., The Wedge™ downspout screen from Avlis Products of Templeton, Calif., and Flo-Free™ Gutter Inserts from D.C.I. Company of Clifton Heights, Pa.
A roof vent apparatus including a low-restriction synthetic fiber mat is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,167,579 to Rotter.
Although the known devices have some utility for their intended purposes, a need still exists in the art for an improved gutter-protecting method and insert apparatus for preventing debris from accumulating in gutters. In particular, there is a need for an improved gutter-protecting insert apparatus which is easy to install, which is long-lasting, and which allows water to flow therethrough, while keeping the majority of debris out.